The Mai Tai is a popular rum cocktail on on-premise menus, and the latest data shows a cocktail on the move. For bars and restaurants, that makes it worth a closer look when planning menus and promotions.

Fintech’s Ground Signal tracks the Mai Tai across on-premise venues through three lenses: what guests say about it on social media, how it shows up on menus, and what the venues that serve it sell. Below are the numbers on when guests order it, which flavors are gaining ground, how venues price it, and what it says about the bars that feature it.

About the Data

This report draws on three Ground Signal datasets, all national:

  • Social insights: How often guests mention specific occasions and spirits when posting about a Mai Tai, compared with all on-premise posts, from January 2023 to December 2025.
  • Menu insights: Share of Mai Tai menu placements by flavor, spirit, and price, from December 2024 to December 2025.
  • Sales insights: Spirits purchases by the top accounts that feature a Mai Tai, compared with the average account nationally, for the 12 months ending December 2025.

Holidays Are Driving the Mai Tai’s Fastest-Growing Occasions

When guests post about a Mai Tai, the occasions they mention show when the drink fits into their plans. Over the past two years, four of the seven fastest-growing Mai Tai occasions were holidays. Here is how much each one’s share of Mai Tai occasion mentions grew:

  • Mardi Gras: up 134%
  • Mother’s Day: up 66%
  • Labor Day: up 63%
  • Memorial Day: up 35%

Recurring weekly occasions are climbing too. Game Night grew 66%, Taco Tuesday grew 56%, and Trivia grew 52%.

Everyday occasions still carry the most volume. Guests are 440% more likely to mention Happy Hour when posting about a Mai Tai than in on-premise posts overall, and 162% more likely to mention Travel.

How to Use This on Your Menu

  • Feature the Mai Tai in holiday promotions, starting with Mardi Gras and carrying through the summer stretch from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
  • Give it a spot on your happy hour menu, where guest interest is already strongest.
  • Pair it with weekly events like trivia or game night to keep orders steady between holidays.

Tropical Flavors Are the Fastest-Growing Mai Tai Ingredients

The classic build still defines most Mai Tais on menus. Orange appears in 41% of them, pineapple in 36%, lime in 34% and almond in 31%. From December 2024 to December 2025, most of those flavors held flat or slipped, and pineapple dropped 17%.

Growth is coming from tropical additions that few venues use yet:

  • Guava: in 1.5% of Mai Tais, up 62%
  • Banana: in 1.9% of Mai Tais, up 46%
  • Tropical (as a menu descriptor): in 19% of Mai Tais, up 56%
  • Coconut: in 12% of Mai Tais, up 9%

How to Use This on Your Menu

  • Keep a classic Mai Tai for guests who expect the original.
  • Test a guava or banana version as a seasonal or limited-time feature. With so few venues offering these flavors, it gives your menu a point of difference.
  • Name the flavor in your menu description so guests know what makes your version different.

What Venues Charge for a Mai Tai

The average Mai Tai costs $12.98 nationally. Prices spread across every tier, with the largest share sitting at the top:

  • Under $10: 18% of Mai Tais
  • $10 to $12: 16%
  • $12 to $14: 19%
  • $14 to $16: 22%
  • Over $16: 26%

Nearly half of all Mai Tais on menus (48%) are priced above $14.

How to Use This on Your Menu

  • Use the $12.98 national average as a benchmark when reviewing your price.
  • If your Mai Tai uses premium rum or fresh-made ingredients, a quarter of venues already charge more than $16.

Venues That Feature the Mai Tai Buy More Premium Spirits

Ground Signal’s sales data looks at the full spirits program of the top accounts that serve a Mai Tai, compared with the average account nationally. Purchases are measured in 9-liter cases per year.

  • Rum: top Mai Tai accounts buy 100% more, averaging 25.8 cases per year vs. 12.9
  • Liqueur: 62% more
  • Tequila: the best-selling category in these accounts, at 41% more than average
  • Super Premium spirits: 64% more, with purchases in these accounts up 5% over the past two years

These venues buy more across nearly every category, including vodka (38% more) and gin (32% more). The data points to bars with broad, active cocktail programs.

How to Use This on Your Menu

  • Look at your full cocktail lineup alongside your Mai Tai. The venues doing well with it stock a wide spirits range.
  • Consider a premium Mai Tai option. Super Premium purchases in these accounts are growing even as most price tiers dip.
  • Share these trends with your supplier and distributor reps when planning your next menu change.

Key Takeaways

  • Holidays and happy hour are the Mai Tai’s strongest occasions, led by Mardi Gras (up 134%).
  • Guava and banana are the fastest-growing Mai Tai flavors, and few venues offer them yet.
  • Venues that feature the Mai Tai buy more spirits across categories, including 64% more Super Premium.

Frequently Asked Questions

Guava is the fastest-growing Mai Tai flavor on menus, up 62% from December 2024 to December 2025, followed by banana (up 46%). Orange remains the most common flavor, appearing in 41% of Mai Tais.

How Much Does a Mai Tai Cost at a Bar?

The average Mai Tai costs $12.98 nationally, based on December 2025 menu data. About 26% of Mai Tais are priced above $16.

When Do People Order Mai Tais Most?

Happy hour is the top Mai Tai occasion. Guests are 440% more likely to mention happy hour when posting about a Mai Tai than in on-premise posts overall. Mardi Gras is the fastest-growing occasion, up 134% over two years.

What Spirit Is in a Mai Tai?

Rum. It appears in 96% of Mai Tais on menus nationally. Other spirits like vodka and tequila appear in fewer than 2% each, and their share is shrinking.